Automatic safety car-coupling



(No Model.)

J. W..TURK 8u W. T. HAR-RIS. AUTOMATIC SAFETY GAR GOUPL'ING.

190,599,888. Patented Mar. 1.1898.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

JOHN W. TURK AND WILLIAM T. HARRIS, OF BARDWELL, KENTUCKY.

' AoToMATlC sAFI-:TY CAR-COUPLING.

lSPIEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,883, dated March 1, 1898.

Application filed May 3, 1897. Serial No. 634,838. (No model.)

To aLZZ whom it may concern.:

Be it known that we, JOHN W. TURK and VILLIAM T.v HARRIS, citizens of the United States, residing at Bardwell, in the county of Carlisle and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Safety Car-Couplings; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and eX- act description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to improvements in car-couplings; and the object is to provide a simple, inexpensive, and effective device of this class for coupling and uncoupling railway-cars without the necessity of going between the cars. Y

To these ends the novelty consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of the same, as will be hereinafter more fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings the same reference characters indicate the same parts of the invention.

Figure 1 is a plan View of our improved couplling with the top plate of the draw-head removed. Fig. 2 is a similar view with the jaws in position for uncoupling. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section.

1 represents the draw-head, and 2 the removable cover,secured thereto by the bolts 3 3.

4 4 represent two crossed levers fulcrumed on the bolt 5 and provided with the forwardlyprojecting jaws 6 6, adapted to engage the arrow-shaped head 7 of the coupling-bar 8. 9 9 represent spiral springs arranged between the outside of the parallel arms 10 10 of said levers and the contiguous walls 12 12 of the draw-head.

13 represents a vertical shaft extending between the inner faces of the arms l0 10, andit is provided with a transverse bar 14, the outer beveled ends 15 15 of which are adapted to force said arms apart, to open the jaws 6 6, and release the coupling-barwhen the shaft 13 is about an eighth of a revolution, and when the shaft is turned about one-quarter of a revolution the beveled ends 15 15 of the transverse bar engage the notches `16 16 in the contiguous faces of the arms 10 10 and lock the jaws apart, so as to prevent the cars coupling when they are brought together and it is not desired to couple them.

`The upper end of the shaft 13 is provided with a horizontal arm 17, which is pivoted to a transverse rod 1S, the handles 19 20 of which extend to about the sides of the car, so that a person standing on the outside of the cars can `manipulate the coupling with safety and without the necessity of going between them.

Although we have's'peciiically described the construction and relative arrangement of the several elements of our invention, we do not desire to be confined to the same, as such changes or modifications may be made as clearly fall within the scope of our invention without departing from the spirit thereof.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A carcoupling,comprisin g the draw-head 1, the. cover 2 removably secured thereto, the bolt 5 extending vertically through said cover and draw-head, the crossed levers 4, 4 fulcrumed on said bolt, and mounted entirely within said draw-head and provided with the jaws 6, 6, and the parallel arms 10, 10, the inner faces of which are formed with the notches 16, 16, and the spiral springs 9, 9, arranged between said arms and the inner walls of the draw-head, in combination with the vertical shaft 1,3, journaled in said cover and drawhead, the transverse bar 14 centrallyflxed in the lower end of said shaft between the cover and the draw-head and in the same plane with and between the arms 10, 10, and terminating inthe beveled ends 15, 15, which are adapted to beturned at a right angle to the arms 10, to simultaneously engage the notches 16, 16, so as to lock the crossed levers 4, 4, in an open position, the horizontal arm 17 iiXed to the shaft 13, the transverse rod 18 engaging the free end of said arm and having a reciprocating movement inkeepers fixed to the end of the car, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof we hereunto affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses;

JOHN w. TURK, WILLIAM rr. I-IARRIs.

Witnesses:

J. S. ATKINs, N. BISHOP. 

